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Topic: [Archived] Skills (Read 790 times)

Skills in D&D are the majority of the non-combat checks you make. They cover all the little things, from climbing a wall to bluffing at a game of poker. Some spells allow you to be instantly good at something (divine insight >.<). I'm adding abilities based on your actual skill ranks. These will look like normal skills up till about 9 ranks. After that they will start ramping up quickly to keep pace with spellcasting. (a 15 on a roll would give something equivalent to the second highest spell a caster would have at that level.)

WARNING: This isn't even close to finished.

Tasks and Tricks

Task: Similar to a stance from the ToB. You make the skill check to begin the Task and you gain the benefits of the task until you choose to end it or you enter another task. If you perform a trick, the task ends immediately after.Trick: Similar to a maneuver or spell. You make the skill check to perform the trick. Regardless of success or failure, the DC increases by # each time you attempt it without resting (similar to truenaming). More powerful tricks increase in difficulty faster.

Characters learn these 2 spell levels behind the wizard. When the wizard would get his 3rd level spells (5th), skillmonkeys get all 1st level Tasks & Tricks that they qualify for. Qualification is retroactive.

New Skills Rules:• Epic skill usages cannot be used without 14 (19?) ranks in said skill.• Classes gain skill points per ability score, usable for those kinds of abilities. Make the 8+INT into 8+Stats(+4 dex points for your 18 dex, 2 str points for your 14 str, etc). Casters tend to be more SAD than mundanes, so this would give more points to mundanes while making stats matter a little more than just being a modifier. (Thought: Maybe stat bonus ranks can follow the item familiar bonus rule? (Cannot have more bonus ranks than normal ranks). Being a prodigy only goes so far.)• Class-derived skill points (the "X" in "X+Int") ignore the cross-class rules. Now the skillmonkey really CAN learn almost anything.

(click to show/hide)

example by numbers:

Wizard with 18 INT gets 24 skill points at first level. 8 of them are wildcard points, while the remaining 16 are Int only.Rogue with 14 INT (good for a skillmonkey) gets 40 skill points at first level. 32 of them are wildcard points, 8 of them are Int only.

The rogue is already pulling ahead at this point.

Now let's factor in the physical scores.The full wizard statblock is 10,12,14,18,10,10 (That seems to be the goto build for a pure casting wizard)This gives our wizard another 4 dex points & 8 con points. That should cover concentration, and work toward 5 in balance.

Meanwhile the rogue with his MAD build (14,16,14,14,10,10) gets 8 str, 12 dex, & 8 con. All of those points are going to be useful to him.

Totals:Wizard: 36 (Mostly in INT only)Rogue: 68 (Many of which can be used wherever the rogue likes)

Oh, and about our BSF? X+STR+DEX+CON= 2+3+2+3=40 Skill points, mostly on physical skills. 8 of them are wildcard. STILL higher than the wizard, and more useful for his chosen profession.

EDIT: I direct your attention to an ongoing google doc. This spreadsheet is my attempt at mapping out spells that affect skills.